7 Quick Takes (Volume 63)--The Christmas Edition

1) Ladies Man got in the van after his dad and me spent the day shopping.

Ladies Man: You not really making our gifts, are you?

Me: Yes.

Ladies Man (groaning): Oh, then they're going to suck.

Dad: You know, I'm tired of you guys thinking we aren't capable of making you something nice.

Ladies Man: Well if you're making it we know it isn't a video game.

Me: My minor in college was computer applications. I use to write computer programs all the time in college.

Ladies Man: Yeah, but you told me no one uses the languages you programmed in then and you don't know the new ones.

Me: I've been learning some HTML in my blogging stuff.

Dad: And I designed a whole website. What makes you think we can't do it?

Miss Innocent One: Yeah. They might be able to do it.

Ladies Man: They're not that smart. They're a broken down old piece of meat.

Me: MEAT?! A broken down old piece of MEAT?!

Dad pulls the van over.

Dad: You can walk home.

And so he did. Lest you think we're terrible parents, we were only a block from home and just in case you think Ladies Man is the cruelest son on the face of the planet, you must know he was laughing and giving us a hard time, not serious. We all got a good laugh out of it.

2) Take a look at the first thing we encountered as we walked into a Christian bookstore last week.

Can someone please tell me what in the world this is supposed to mean?! What is the message I'm to glean from this statue? I'm completely clueless and slightly disturbed.

3) We've had some good family time this last week. Wednesday night we took the whole brood to a movie. As we waited for the movie to start, I leaned over to Drummer Boy and Drama Queen.

Me: So are you past the age yet where it's lame to be out with your parents?

Drummer Boy: Eh.

Drama Queen: Ish.

Ladies Man: Yeah, well, no offense (ARG!!), but not really.

Me: Yeah, no offense (eye roll). Well, is it more respectable if you're with your whole family?

Ladies Man: Yeah, it helps.

Meanwhile Miss Innocent One, our only non teen, listens with a confused look on her face. Thank the Lord, I'm still cool in one of my kids' eyes.

4) We had a dilemma at our house over WHEN to open gifts. The boys wanted to do it Christmas Eve and the girls wanted to do it Christmas morning. Oh. My. Goodness. They drove me bananas! There was no listening to each other. No give and take. Once we decided to open some on each day, the questions started again. "What about the stockings? WHEN on Christmas Eve will we open? How many?" At my wit's end I decided I must be the most wishy washy mother on the face of the globe, catering to my kids' every wish since my children made such an issue of it all. Wednesday night I was ready to load up the Grinch's sled and give my Whos a reality check to remind them what we REALLY celebrate.

5) We're sitting around the dinner table and Kevin poses a question.

Dad: If you could be a character in the nativity, what would you be and why?

Uh huh. If you're thinking I vocalized my concerns from the night before, you'd be right! I've got a good husband, I tell you.

Dad: If you could be a character in the nativity, what would you be and why?

Me: I'd be a sheep. There's no expectations on the sheep. It gets to sit there and take in the whole scene. It doesn't have to do anything or say anything. It just soaks it all in.

Drama Queen stands and raises a hand in the air, you know, just in case we may miss her. Right.

Drama Queen: I'd be the star.

Of course.

Dad: Why do you want to be the star?

Drama Queen: Dad. . .think about it.

Miss Innocent One: I'd be the angel.

Have I pegged these kids' names or what?!

Ladies Man: I'd be a shepherd. If you were a shepherd you'd have a chance to do what God tells you and find the baby.

Oooh, good answer. Drummer Boy agreed.

Drummer Boy: Yeah, I'd be a shepherd too.

Me to Dad: You haven't said what you'd be.

Drama Queen: You can't be the star. I'm the star. There's only one star.

Yeah, yeah, we know.

Dad: I'd want to be Joseph so I could be part of Jesus's life for longer than one night.

Me: But can you imagine the huge responsibility?

Drummer Boy: Yeah, that's why I'd be a shepherd. You get to be part of it, but not have a tough job.

Miss Innocent One: The angel gets to tell everyone the good news.

Drama Queen: But I'd point them all to Jesus.

Dad: But how would you do that?

Drama Queen: I'm the star! Everyone would see and know where the baby was because of me.

Dad: Next question. If you could give the person on your right some kind of service or something they need, what would you give them?

I sat to the right of Miss Innocent One. Her answer?

Miss Innocent One: I think Mom could use some ear plugs.

6) Drama Queen guessed right. We did make gag gifts, but only for she and Ladies Man since they are the ones who gave us such a hard time about it. Here's pictures with both gifts.


7) As I think about what Christmas means to me, how Jesus coming to earth affects me personally, one verse comes to mind.

I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

John 10:10

I hate to think about who I would be or what I would have missed had I not sought after Him when He knocked on my heart. If God's calling you, don't be afraid. Know His plan is SO MUCH BETTER than your own. May you have the courage to put yourself in His hands and experience life to the full, my friends.

Merry Christmas!